The North Koreans take on Uzbekistan in a mouth-watering finale at Pakhtakor Stadium that sees arguably one of the strongest upcoming youth sides in Asia against the tournament hosts that are sure to be backed by a large and vocal crowd.

They have certainly proved a tough nut to crack in Tashkent having conceded just three goals in five games whilst they have been lethal in attack having scored no fewer than two goals against all but one of their opponents.

DPR Korea will need to be at their very best on Sunday though if they are to emulate the achievement of the under-19 side in China less than one month ago but Ri (pictured) is confident his players are fully prepared for whatever Uzbekistan have to offer.

“We are now at the last stage of this tournament,” he said

“I cannot help looking back at the last 10 days at the effort that we have devoted to bring us to this last stage.

“I am not only feeling excitement but also very nervous but overall I feel very pleased to be here.

“All the teams who qualified for this tournament had their own hope to be the participants in the final match and we are no exception. We had this ambition and over the course of this tournament it grew stronger.

“We watched videos of each of our opponents to prepare and we came to realise our ambition and hope that we have become more and more solid.

“I felt that if we prepare more and could overcome all our shortcomings then surely we could be in the final match. This way, we became more and more convinced as time passed that we would achieve our goal.”

While there can be little doubt about the strength and ability of the DPR Korea players, an unknown factor is how they will cope with the atmosphere.

For many young players in Tashkent the AFC U-16 Championship has represented the first time they have played in front of large crowds and with at least 30, 000 anticipated to cheer Uzbekistan on at Pakhtakor Stadium on Sunday, it will certainly test the mental strength of the North Koreans to the limit.

“Tomorrow we must cope with the pressure both from the fans and from the pressing of the Uzbekistan players,” added Ri.

“It is my job as coach to ensure my players are not affected by the crowd and are strong mentally so they can perform to their best ability.”